Lawn-mower.



PATENTED DEC. 10, 1907. I. ELLWOOD.

LAWN MOWER.

APPLICATION FILED MAY 29, 1907.

3 SHEEIS-SHBET 1.

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No. 878,523v

I. ELLWOOD. LAWN MOWER.

'urmcurox FILED nu 29.1907.

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glwwentoz Ivan Ellwood I Quota:

8 HHWWIHW witnesses No. 873,523. PATENTED DEC. 10, 1907. I. EIILWOOD.

LAWN MOWER.

APPLICATION rum) my 29.1907.

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UNITED STATES PATE T omen IVAN ELLWOOD, OF RED oaniowi. H

LAW-MOWER.

To all whom it may concern: I

6 Be it known that I, IvAN ELLwoon, a citizen of the United States of America, residing at Red Oak, in the county of Montgomery and .State of Iowa, have invented new and useful Improvements in Lawn-Mowers, of which the following isa specification.

This invention relates to lawn mowers of that type embodying a rotary cutter having spiral cutting blades .and a coacting stationary knife carried by a frame mounted on ground wheels, such as disclosed in my prior application filed July 3, 1906, Serial Number 324,666.

One object of the present invention is to :provide a novel construction of frame and means for mountin the same and cutting.

devices upon the rive or round wheels, whereb the necessity of eg p oyin a round Filler: is ofifv iated and whereby the on r lii' evices are betweeiimm suc 081511 flaa g smaai rfiacemn its cutting edge lylngls iib stantialljf iiiftlie a ew e trwal tee nae lihaeyanfieda r nearly so w en t e ma'hlnne 1s m 0 era-.

" tibm'the entire weight of the machine eing carried upon the drive wheels to secure greater I tractive and cutting power.

Another object is to provide improved means for adjusting the cutting mechanism upon the frame and drive wheels, to position the stationary cutterso that-it may swing under the action of the handle in the operation of the machine in a given range of movement without altering its relat1on to the blades of the cutting wheel}; and to provide a means whereby the cutting mechanism'may be readily removed for sharpening and repairs1- I; a I

I With the above and other objects in view," the invention consists of the novel construction, combination and arrangement of parts hereinafter fully described and claimed, reference being had to the accompanying drawigure 1 isa rear elevation of a lawn mower embodyin my invention, parts being broken away to etter show the construction. Fig. 2 is a section on line 2-2 of Fig. 1. Fig. 3 is a section on line 3-3 of Fig. 1. Fig. 4 is an outer end elevation showing one of the 1grround wheels and associated-- parts 'of the am'e. Fig. 5 is an irregular vertical section.

on line 55 of Fig. 2. Fig. 6 is an elevation of the casing-removed from the-wheel--and .a-. vertical section through the-adjustable hous-I Specification of Letters Patent.

Application filed May 29.1907. Serial No. 376.284.

" to receive the outerr M Patented nee. 10, 1907.

ing and gear connection between the rotary cutter shaft and'driving train. Fig. 7 is -a detail showing the adjustable connection -1 section on line 88' of Fig. 2.

the handle with its yoke. Fig. 8 is a detail Referring to the drawn s, 1 represents the ound or drive wheels 0 the mower, each aving a hub 2 carrying a bearing box or' J frame is' ormed by inner and outer hangers composed of sets orypairs of divergently ar of t e hangers at both 'sides'of 'the jmachine. being connected and braced by.' tran svers e;

rods or bars 6 and 7,'integral 'with orj'sec'ured to the arms in anyj preferred'manner outer converging ends of "each s 't' are inte ally: connected i their polnt of junction The inner converginglfientl's gear casing 8. closed 'atjits' cover plate 9 detachablysecure plate is providediwitli 'an h ening-f for the in ner end or head of thebo t 4,*which. is're' f' by: 1emPi n H ice tained in position a washer 1,2.

casinfii and a so loosely mounted on the hub Within? the casing is a masterjdrive wheel 13,011 the? inner side of whichislaxatchet,wheel l41fiXed i to the hub, the wheel-13'beinglprovided'with gravitypawls 15 toengage t e teeth of the ratchet wheel, the construction and -'arrange-' .I'nent of the pawls and teethbeingsucli as to adapt the ratchet wheel to impart motion to? the master drive wheel when the machine is propelled forward and allow the pawls to ride. over the teeth without'afiectin'g said master drive gear to permit the machine to. be hacked or drawn rearwardly without operating the cutting mechanism.

The gear 13 meshes with a pinion 16 arranged within a partially circular extension 17 of the casing located at the lower front portion thereof, which. extension projects 1nwardly and laterally beyond the casing to;

form a housing 17 for a power transmitting gear 18, said pinion and gear being mounted ion a common shaft 19 journaledin the end walls of theextension 17 and its companion rangpd arms 5 and 6, thefront and-rear arins rotary cutter consists of spiral cutting blades 25 connected at their ends by arms 26 to the collars 22 of the gears 21, said blades being braced at one or more places equidistant from their ends by a secondary set of spider arms 27 carried by a collar or sleeve 28cmbracing the shaft. Instead of the shaft 23 being revoluble in the bracket plates or arms 24, said shaft may be fixed in said arms and the hubs or sleeves 22 arranged to turn thereon to rotate the cutting blades around the stationary shaft, as. will be readily understood.

The bracket arms 24 are arranged on the inner sides of the casings 8 at a normal downward and rearward angle obliquely to the axes of the drive wheels, and carry at their lower ends the supporting plate or bar 29 of the stationary cuttin knife or blade 30. The bar 29 is provided at each end with an extension or upri ht bracket piece 31 fulcrumed to the ad acent hanger arm 24 byscrews 32 or other suitable pivot connections, and to these bracket pieces are connected adjusting screws 32 mounted in bearings 33, whereby the stationary knife may be adjusted on its pivotalconnections to set it in proper relation to the cutting Wheel. The

racket arms 24 project through the space or slot 20 between the cover plate of each casing and the upper end of the body wall of the housing 17, and are mounted in such manner as to be adjustable to regulate the height of out and to maintain the cutting edge of the v stationary knife 30s-ubstantially in the vertical plane of the axes of the drive wheels and to permit the cutting mechanism as a whole to )e quickly and conveniently detached for sharpening or repairs and as readily reapplied after being refitted for work;

Projecting laterally from each casing and supported respectively by the cover late 9 provided with nuts and an apertured lug or ear 8 on the ottorn of the casing are 11 per and lower guide bolts 34, which extend through slots 35 in the arms 24, a pair of such slots being formed in each arm, one above and the other below the shaft 23, thus. providing for the adjustment of said bracket arms in a vertical plane to raise and lower the cutting mechanism, the bolts being 36 by which the bracket arms may be clam ed in adjusted position. The slots 35 are of t e same arcuation as gear 'the cutting mechanism.

wheel 18 but with opposite curvature, so that pinion '21 always pro erly engage gear 18' at any osition of a justment' to regulate the heig t of cut, it being under-- stood that the cutting mechanism may be bodily adjusted vertically u ward or downward by a sliding motion of t ebracket arms 24 to the extent limited by the slots 35, and that owing to the form and arrangement of said slots the bracket arms will always maintain the same relation between the gears 18 and 21, irrespective of the height of the cuttingmechanism above the ground surface. A casing or housing 37 incloses each pinion 21 and is 'open at its forward side facing the open rear side of the housing 17 and provided with curved or arcuate wings orextensions 38 to overlap the wallof the housing and maintain a close intervening jo'int; At its up er and lower portion each casing 37 is provi ed with guide flanges 39 engaged by clips or guide members 40 on the arm 24, by which the said casing 37 is permitted to oscillate in a plane concentric with the gear 18. It will thus be understood that as the'bracket arms are, adjusted up and down the casing 37 will turn or rotate 1n its guides to maintain its roper connection with the housing 17,"an that-the necessary corresponding adjustment of the gearing effected by the change inposition of the pinions 21 is effected in an easy and convenient manner.

The handle 41 of the machine is connected in the usual manner to the frame by a yoke, the arms 42 ofwhich are attached at' their axis of the forward ends to the rear armsof the outer v hangers in a rigid manner-either by fastening them to' said arms, as by bolts," or forming them integrally-therewith. The rear ends of the yoke arms terminate in parallel portions 43 receiving the forward end of the handle 41 which is pivoted thereto by a bolt 44 having the usua located in rear of the forward extremity of the handle, through which forward extremity extends a bolt 46 adjustable in arcuate slots 47 formed in said portions 43 and'carrying a clamping nut 48 for fastening it in adjusted position. By this construction the handle may be adjusted to lie at any angle relative to the frame to the necessar degree without varying the position of the ame or parts of It will be seen from the foregoing description that the cutting mechanism is adjustable on the frame to move thecutters closer to or farther from the ground surface 'to reguclamping nut 45. The bolt 44 is late the height of cut, and can be entirely removed from the frame to facilitate the sharpening of same or for any other purpose, and that the arc of. adjustmentis such that the gears 18 and 21 will always be properly engaged, whatever the adjustment of the cutting mechanism with reference to the frame, and further that the mode of constructing the frame insures great strength, rigidity and durability. The ledger plate is so hung relative to the axis of the drive wheels that the edge of the stationary knife lies in the vertical plane of said axis, or nearly so, when in operation. In practice, it is preferred to set the parts so that the distance of the said stationary knife from the axis of the drive wheel relative to the length of the handle is a proximately in a ratio of one to twelve, t e handle being about forty-eight inches from the center of the drive wheels and the stationary knife about four inches, in a machine of the ordinary size,-so that a variation of as much as a foot in the distance of the handle from the ground surface while the machine is in operation will cause the knife to move but an moh in the arc of a circle con centric with the axis of the drive wheels, enabling the handle to be manipulated in operation without changing the position of the stationary cutting knife to any material extent, the variation being so slight in the adjustment and height of cut as to be practically imperceptible. Accordingly, the necessity of employing the usual ground roller as a secondary support and to regulate the height of cut is obviated. It will further be observed that as the weight of the frame and drive gearing is supported solely by the drive wheels the tractive and driving power of the latter is increased to a maximum extent.

lgronnd roller to be dispensed with also simplifies and lightens the machine, thus adapting it to bemanufactured at a lower cost.

Having thus described the invention, what is claimed as new, is

1. In a lawn mower, a frame provided with side members, each including a car casing, ground wheels rotatably mounte on said side members and having hubs projecting into the casings, cutting mechanism, including stationary and rotary cutting devices, brackets detachably and adjustably connected with the casings and carrying said cutting mechanism, clutch gearing arranged within each casing, and gear trains at each side of the frame for operating the rotary cutter, each including a gear member supported upon the adjacent bracket for adjustment therewith.

2. In a lawn mower, the combination of a frame provided with side members, each including a gear casing, ground wheels rota tably mounted on said side members and provided with hubs projecting into the casings, clutch gearing within each casing con nected with the hub of the drive wheel, power transmitting gears mounted within the. casings and driven by the clutch gearing, a cutter frame provided with bracket arms detachably and adjustably mounted upon The construction which enables the usual the casings, a stationary cutter carried thereby, a revoluble cutter supported by the bracket arms, and gears upon the bracket arms for transmitting motion to the revoluble cutter from the transmission gears.

3. In a lawn mower, the combination of 'a frame provided with side members, each including a gear casin ground wheels rotatably mounted on said side members and having hubs projecting into the casings, a supporting bar, brackets carrying said bar and mounted for adjustment in an arcuate path upon said respective gear casings, a stationary cutter carried by the supporting bar, a revoluble cutter having its shaft supported by the bracket arms and provided with side members, each including a gear casing, drive wheels rotatably mounted on said side members, clutch and transmission gearing Within each casing driven from the associated drive wheel, bracket arms, cutting mechanism comprising relatively stationary and rotary cutters carried by said bracket arms, means adjustably and detachably connecting said arms for adjustment in an arcuate path on the casings, and gears supported by the bracket arms and driven by the transmission gearing for driving the rotary cutter. I

5. In a lawn mower, the combination of a frame provided with side members, each including a gear casing, drive wheels rotatably mounted on said side members and having hubs projecting into the gear casings, gearing within each gear casing having a ratchet connection with the hub of the adjacent wheel, and including a transmission gear inclosed by a portion of said casing and arranged upon the inner side thereof, bracket IVAN ELLWOOD.

Witnesses:

H. G. BARNES, EVA TYLER. 

